The Family Plot Blog
These Creative Caskets From Trey Ganem Designs Will Amaze You
I first met Trey Ganem when he introduced his creative caskets at ICCFA's 2014 convention, when he had a 10'x10' booth with three caskets. This year, he featured ten fantastically designed and custom-built caskets in a large island exhibit at ICCFA's 2016 convention in New Orleans. In the video below, he starts out with an over-the-top rock and roll casket made for a reality TV show that's filming his endeavors. That model features a playable...
June 4: ABQ Death Cafe
Cookies, tea and mortality! The next Albuquerque Death Cafe will take place on Saturday, June 4, 2016 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Gail Rubin’s home. Come to talk about what's on your heart or mind about mortality issues. RSVP through the Meetup Group or post a note in the comment section. Click here to go to the Meetup page. The address will be provided to those who indicate they will attend. The objective of the Death Cafe is “To increase...
May 18: Two Ann Arbor Presentations
Gail Rubin, The Doyenne of Death®, will make two presentations in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on May 18. From 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., it's “Laughing in the Face of Death: Movies, Medicine and Mortality.” (Click the talk title for a downloadable PDF flyer.) In hospitals, medical professionals, patients and families focus on maintaining life and returning to health. Despite great advances in medical care, humans still have a 100% mortality rate. Using...
Infant Death Made Easier to Handle with Peaceful Memories
Infant death is hard for hospital personnel as well as the family. Transporting the mortal remains can be painful and awkward. Peaceful Memories, of Memories Unlimited, has created the Preshand System™ to give nurses and funeral directors a discreet and respectful way to handle, transport and present a demised infant. Memories Unlimited offers a range of earth-friendly, hand-crafted paper memorial offerings, including Peaceful Return™ urns,...
Save My Ink Forever Makes Tattoos into Life Memorials
People with tattoos are proud of their body art. So don't be surprised when families want to save that piece of a loved one. Save My Ink Forever gives funeral directors a unique way to preserve a life story, and generate revenue in the process. More than 80 million Americans have tattoos, and 40 million have more than one. That's a potentially very big market. Save My Ink Forever exhibited at the International Cemetery Cremation and Funeral...
ClayLinks: An Easy, Affordable, Same-Day Keepsake
After 20 years of perfecting the art of conserving paw prints for pet parents, World By the Tail introduced ClayLinks® Kits, the forever hand print kit for people, at the 2016 ICCFA convention. The hand or foot print mementos are helpful bereavement care tools in hospitals when newborns and infants die. Now funeral directors can use ClayLinks as an easy, affordable keepsake, ready to go home with a family the same day they make funeral...
Unique Products for Funerals and Other Developments
As usual, the expo at the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) featured many fascinating developments and unique products. Coverage is rolling out on The Family Plot Blog, continuing over the next few weeks. Right now, you can see these stories with video: an example of a New Orleans jazz funeral, the BodySealer® system, handcrafted cremation urns from Earthhandsfire, Affirmativ Diagnostics brain autopsy and DNA...
Mary Leigh Schaaf Ries Obituary
You've got to love an obituary that names those left behind including, "a mentally deranged chihuahua, Calvin "The Destroyer of Rugs," and a house full of stuff we have no idea what to do with." Here's a notable obituary with a sense of fun, starting with the exit line, "... joined the angel choir," noting her Latin was so good, she corrected priests, and praising her helicopter parenting skills. This was listed in the Cincinnati Enquirer as...
When Death Calls Speech by Gail Rubin
Gail Rubin, CT, is a death educator who uses humor and funny films to help break the ice about end-of-life issues. In this Toastmasters International Speech competition, she presents "When Death Calls," a compelling case for making advance end-of-life plans -- wills and trusts, advance medical directives and pre-need funeral planning -- to be prepared for that time when death calls. This speech was presented in the Division B contest for...
The Infinity Burial Suit from Coeio
Jae Rhim Lee made a viral video splash with her 2011 TED Talk, My Mushroom Burial Suit. The talk has been viewed more than 1.3 million times. What started as an exploration of living, dying, recycling systems and the toxin-removing properties of mushrooms has evolved into Coeio, a company that makes green burial products, specifically, the Infinity Burial Suit. You may have seen her wearing the "ninja pajamas" as she described it in her TED...
Affirmativ Diagnostics Brain Autopsy Services
Dementia is devastating for families as they watch a loved one slip away mentally, sometimes long before that person's death. And the only way to get a definitive answer about the cause, whether Alzheimer's disease or something else, is a brain autopsy. Affirmativ Diagnostics debuted their brain autopsy and DNA banking services at the 2016 ICCFA convention and expo. They were there to make funeral directors aware of postmortem options they can...
Public Grieving Prince’s Death, Private Cremation
The outpouring of tributes and public displays of grief over the death of the rock star Prince is remarkable. Contrast this reaction with the very private and low-key cremation held for the famously reclusive Prince. When celebrities die, people mourn publicly in ways that they might not for their own family members. After hearing the news of his death, artist Sean Wells, a huge Prince fan, overnight made this meurto painting in tribute. Meurto...
Handcrafted Cremation Urns from Earthhandsfire
A gifted ceramicist with more than 40 years of experience, Kevin Blackburn first started making ceramic urns for cremated remains after his father died in 1996. "His passing got me started thinking about precious vessels and ceremonial urns, the type that could be used for funerary vessels," said Blackburn. He debuted his one-of-a-kind cremation urns at the 2014 International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) convention and...
The Amazing BodySealer
When shipping a body from one place to another, there are many concerns that need to be addressed: preventing fluid leakage, containing odors and keeping the body secure. Before the invention of the BodySealer® system, funeral directors would address these concerns by using a metal Ziegler case, which can cost a family hundreds of dollars. The BodySealer is a hermetically sealed bio-hazard containment pouch that addresses these shipment issues...
Use This Executor’s Checklist to Smooth Estate Transitions
More than 70% of adults avoid preparing for end-of-life realities. They don’t have wills or trusts, advance medical directives or pre-need funeral planning in place before there’s a death in the family. One way to convince people to make these arrangements is to examine the many responsibilities an estate executor has to carry out. An executor can be a spouse, adult child, a legally-appointed friend or relative, or a trust company named by the...
Who Decides Your Healthcare for You?
Don't have an advance medical directive dictating what kind of medical treatment you want should you not be able to speak for yourself, especially at end-of-life? Fix that this Saturday, April 16, the 10th annual Healthcare Decisions Day. It's a day to inspire, educate and empower the public and providers about the importance of advance care planning - that is, expressing what is important to you. You need to answer some tough questions: Want...
New Orleans Jazz Funeral Second Line Parade
The 2016 International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) opened the expo at their annual convention in New Orleans with a traditional jazz funeral procession and second line parade celebration. The event was put together by New Orleans funeral director Louis Charbonnet III, Charbonnet Family Services and Doug Gober. Enjoy this taste of New Orleans culture - and watch all the way to the end to catch the horse-drawn carriage...
Win The Big Lebowski Coffee Can Urn!
If you are a fan of the cult classic film, The Big Lebowski, you will want to know about this auction of a replica urn of the Folger's coffee can used in the film. Memento Memorials is offering this "most modestly priced receptacle" as a fundraiser for PreventCancer.org. The bidding starts on Wednesday, April 13 at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) at $180 at this page. That's not as modestly priced as a plain old coffee can, but the auction is for a...
![[Video] Talking Death and Taxes on A Good Goodbye TV](https://i0.wp.com/agoodgoodbye.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/steve-margulin.jpg?resize=197%2C197&ssl=1)
[Video] Talking Death and Taxes on A Good Goodbye TV
Even with comprehensive estate planning, a host of financial tasks await the executor of an estate. Most people will need help sorting out death and taxes. Effective financial planning helps reduce stress, minimize family conflict, and can even save money. The financial planning episode of A Good Goodbye TV, now available on The Family Plot's YouTube Channel, features an interview with Trusted Advisor Steve Margulin, CPA, CFP®. Steve Margulin...
April 13-16: ICCFA Convention and Expo
What do you get when you combine funeral directors, cemeterians, cremationists and vendors to the funeral industry in New Orleans for a convention? You get one very interesting glimpse into the workings of the death care business. April 13-16, 2016, Gail Rubin attends the annual convention and expo of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) as a trade journalist. She'll be scouting out interesting new developments,...
Start a Conversation with Your Clothing
"All men (and women) are cremated equal." It's a bold statement, one that always prompts smiles and comments when I wear this black T-shirt out in public. Before now, when people asked where they could get their own shirt, there wasn't anyplace I could direct them. Now there is, at AGoodGoodbye.com. The shirt is available in Medium, Large and Extra-Large. It’s printed on hefty cotton that will withstand many trips through the washer and dryer....